Nintendo's next gaming platform, the mysterious NX, is due for release in March 2017, the company has confirmed.

The Japanese gaming giant announced the platform as part of its financial earnings report, and said the term NX is still a working title.

"For our dedicated video game platform business, Nintendo is currently developing a gaming platform codenamed “NX” which is a brand-new concept, and our unique software-led hardware-software integrated business will continue to constitute the core business for Nintendo," the release confirmed.

The exact nature of the Nintendo NX is still shrouded in mystery. Rumours include a hybrid of home console and handheld machine, while ‘leaked’ pictures and video of a controller matching a recent Nintendo patent were circulated before revealed as fake.

There is also no concrete information on its internal architecture, though recent rumours expect it to carry at least as much technical grunt as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Speculation also surrounds the NX’s linkup with smartphones, given Nintendo’s recent release of its first mobile app Miitomo.

The company is expected to reveal more information later in the year, although not at the industry's biggest trade show E3, held in Los Angeles during June. Instead, Nintendo will be focusing almost exclusively on its new Legend of Zelda game, which was also announced as a cross-platform game for both Wii U and NX in 2017.

Rivals Sony and Microsoft are likely to use the event as a platform for their forthcoming rumoured consoles, the PlayStation NEO and an upgradable version of the Xbox One, now that Microsoft has ceased production of the 11 year-old Xbox 360.

In a recent interview with Time, Tatsumi Kimishima, Nintendo’s new president and chief executive, said the NX will be something ‘unique and different’ from Nintendo’s previous consoles. “I can assure you we’re not building the new version of Wii or Wii U,” he said. “We have to move away from those platforms in order to make it something that will appeal.”

While Nintendo’s innovative motion-controlled console Wii was hugely successful following its launch in 2006, selling over 100 million consoles worldwide, its most recent console Wii U has struggled. Since its release in 2012, the Wii U has sold 12.8 million units globally and has faced dwindling third-party support.

Nintendo will be pinning its hopes on the NX to revitalise its hardware sales, alongside its long-awaited move into full-scale mobile gaming.

Nintendo's mobile games

After the launch of its first mobile app Miitomo last month, Nintendo has also announced it is working on two new smartphone games based on the classic Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem.

According to Nintendo, the Animal Crossing app "will be connected with the world of Animal Crossing" played on consoles.